Glen Farley has covered the Patriots for The Enterprise since the Raymond Berry regime.

NFL serves up a look back at Week 4 in the league

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By Glen Farley

Glen Farley has covered sports for The Enterprise since 1978. His time on the Patriots beat dates back to the final year of the Raymond Berry regime, 1989. You could say his roots lie in Foxboro. He once won an award for a piece he wrote on the sod
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Glen Farley has covered sports for The Enterprise since 1978. His time on the Patriots beat dates back to the final year of the Raymond Berry regime, 1989. You could say his roots lie in Foxboro. He once won an award for a piece he wrote on the sod at Gillette Stadium.

Following are highlights from the first quarter of the 2013 NFL season:

NFL MILESTONES

SO CLOSE: Five games in Week 4 were decided by seven points or fewer. To date, 33 games in 2013 have been decided by seven points or fewer, tied for the third-most such games through the first four weeks of a season in NFL history (35 in 2011; 34 in 1988).

COMEBACKS GALORE: In Week 4, three teams came back from fourth-quarter deficits to win. There have been 21 fourth-quarter comebacks so far, tied for the second-most through Week 4 of any season in NFL history (23 in 2011).

ARIZONA and SEATTLE both came back from double-digit deficits in the fourth quarter to win last week. The Cardinals, who trailed 10-0 entering the fourth quarter, scored the final 13 points of the game to defeat Tampa Bay 13-10. It marked the first time the Cardinals erased a 10+ point fourth-quarter deficit to win in regulation since December 28, 2003 against Minnesota.

The Seahawks came back from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to win 23-20 in overtime at Houston. It is the first time the Seahawks have won a game after trailing by at least 14 points in the fourth quarter since December 29, 2002 against San Diego.

PASS TIME: There were three 400-yard passing performances in Week 4, bringing the season total to 10. The 10 individual 400-yard passing games are the most through the first four weeks of any NFL season. The previous high was eight in 2011.

There have been six 400-yard, zero-interception individual performances through the first four weeks of 2013. The six such performances are tied for the most in an entire season in NFL history (2010 and 2012).

There were nine 300-yard passing performances in Week 4, bringing the season total to 39. The 39 individual 300-yard passing games are the third-most through the first four weeks of any NFL season (44 in 2011; 40 in 2012).

Teams have combined for 205 touchdown passes through Week 4, the most through the first four weeks of any season in NFL history. The previous high was 196 in 2011.

SACK ATTACK: NFL teams combined for 101 sacks in Week 3, the second-most in a single week in NFL history (102 in Week 11, 1986).

TEAMS

UNDEFEATED: Five NFL teams – DENVER, KANSAS CITY, NEW ENGLAND, NEW ORLEANS and SEATTLE – are undefeated through Week 4.

The Denver Broncos have won 15 consecutive regular-season games and each by at least seven points. That is the second-longest such streak in NFL history, trailing only the 1941-42 Chicago Bears (16 games).

The Kansas City Chiefs improved to 4-0 after defeating the New York Giants 31-7. The Chiefs are the second team in NFL history to start 4-0 after finishing the previous season with at least 14 losses (1980 Detroit).

The Seattle Seahawks are 4-0 for the first time in franchise history.

PLAYERS

PERSISTENT PASSER: Last night, New Orleans quarterback DREW BREES threw for 413 yards and four touchdown passes in the Saints 38-17 win over Miami. Brees recorded his ninth consecutive game with at least 300 yards passing, tying his own record for the longest such streak of all time.

The quarterbacks with the most consecutive games with 300 yards passing:

PLAYER

TEAM

DATES

CONSEC. 300-YD GAMES

Drew Brees

New Orleans

11/29/12-present

9*

Drew Brees

New Orleans

11/13/11-9/6/12

9

Peyton Manning

Denver

12/23/12-present

6*

Steve Young

San Francisco

9/6/98-10/18/98

6

Kurt Warner

St. Louis

9/4/00-10/15/00

6

Rich Gannon

Oakland

9/15/02-10/27/02

6

*Active streak

LEAD MANNING: Denver quarterback PEYTON MANNING passed for 327 yards and four touchdowns in the Broncos’ 52-20 win over Philadelphia. Manning has 16 touchdown passes, the most through the first four games of a season in NFL history.

In his first 20 games with the Broncos, Manning has 6,129 yards and 53 touchdowns. Those marks are the most by a player in his first 20 games with a team.

Manning has led his teams to a 4-0 start six times in his career, the most in the Super Bowl era.

YOUTH IS SERVED: Since 2011, teams have started nine rookie quarterbacks in Week 1, the most during a three-year span since at least 1950. This season the New York Jets started rookie quarterback GENO SMITH, while the Buffalo Bills started rookie quarterback EJ MANUEL.

The nine rookie quarterbacks to start their team’s first game of the season since 2011:

ROOKIE YEAR

QUARTERBACKS

TEAM

OPPONENT

RESULT

2011

Andy Dalton

Cincinnati

Cleveland

Won, 27-17

2011

Cam Newton

Carolina

Arizona

Lost, 28-21

2012

Robert Griffin III

Washington

New Orleans

Won, 40-32

2012

Andrew Luck

Indianapolis

Chicago

Lost, 41-21

2012

Ryan Tannehill

Miami

Houston

Lost, 30-10

2012

Brandon Weeden

Cleveland

Philadelphia

Lost, 17-16

2012

Russell Wilson

Seattle

Arizona

Lost, 20-16

2013

EJ Manuel

Buffalo

New England

Lost, 23-21

2013

Geno Smith

New York Jets

Tampa Bay

Won, 18-17

MR. MVP: Minnesota running back ADRIAN PETERSON rushed for 140 yards and two touchdowns in the Vikings’ 34-27 win over Pittsburgh at London’s Wembley Stadium. Peterson had touchdown runs of 60 and seven yards. In his career, he has 12 touchdown runs of at least 60 yards, the most in NFL history. Pro Football Hall of Famer JIM BROWN is second with nine such TD runs.

GREAT GRAHAM: New Orleans tight end JIMMY GRAHAM caught four passes for 100 yards and two touchdowns in New Orleans’ win over Miami last night. Graham has 413 receiving yards in his past three games, tied for the most by a tight end in a three-game span in a single season.

The most receiving yards by a tight end over a three-game span in a single season: